Yet Another Speckled Heart Grits Recipe

The other day I wrote about my trip to Callaway Gardens and my love affair with their speckled heart grits......if you forgot you can see the post here. 

Here is another recipe.....

1 cup Speckled Heart Grits

4 cups water

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups grated sharp cheese

1 stick margarine

Dash of Tobasco

Cook grits according to a traditional recipe above.   Combine all ingredients.  Pour in a casserole dish.  

Bake 1 hour in a 325 degree oven.   

Serves 4-6

Pasta Primavera

12 ounces Spaghetti

1 T. olive oil

1 medium onion, 6-8 ounces, finely chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 pint grape tomatoes

12 ounces asparagus, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces

1 medium zucchini, cut into half moons

1/4 cup water

Salt

1 can (14-14.5 ounces) no salt-added garbanzo beans (chickpeas), rinsed and drained

1 medium carrot, grated

1/4 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated (about 2 T. )

2 T. fresh lemon juice

Fresh basil leaves for garnish

Heat 6-quart saucepan of water to boiling on high.  Cook pasta as label directs.  

Meanwhile in a 12-inch skillet. heat oil on medium.  Add onion and garlic; cook 2-3 minutes or until golden, stirring occasionally.

Add grape tomatoes; cook 5 minutes or until they begin to soften.   Add asparagus, zucchini, water, and 1/4 teaspoon salt.   

Cover and cook 5-7 minutes or until tomatoes begin to burst.  

Stir in beans and carrot; cook 2-3 minutes or until beans are heated through.  

Reserve 1/2 cup pasta; return to saucepot and add vegetable mixture, Parmesan, lemon juice, reserved cooking liquid, and 1/4 teaspoon salt; toss until combined.   

Divide among serving plates

Sour Cream Chive Biscuits

I had these wonderful little biscuits at The Farmhouse restaurant down at Serenbe recently.  

I loved these little bits of joy so much I searched on the Internet until I found the recipe, and I discovered why they are so good.......simple is always best, and this recipe is simple.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.  Grease a 12 cup muffin pan.

Take 2 cups White Lily self-rising flour and add in 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives

Then add in 1 cup sour cream and 2 sticks ( 1cup) melted butter.

Stir mixture gently until combined.   Do not over stir. Put approximately 1/4 cup of mixture into each greased muffin tin.

Bake 12-15 minutes till lightly golden brown.  Frozen chives can be used.   Yield:  12

I love baking these in a muffin tin so that you get a nice crust around the outside of each biscuit.  

Don't they look great?

Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

I like this recipe because I usually have the ingredients on hand.   

These bars can be used for breakfast or a snack....a dessert as well.

 It suits the craving for something sweet......satisfies the craving fairly quickly, but the bars aren't overly sweet......and most importantly since you use an 8 x 8 pan there are tons of leftovers to feel guilty about later.

Short and sweet......and done.

1 ½ cup quick cooking oats

¼ cup light brown sugar-packed

½ t. kosher salt

1 t. ground cinnamon

1 t. vanilla extract

½ cup milk

1 lightly beaten large egg

Mix everything listed above together.

Add 1 large mashed banana and 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter.

Pour the mixture into a greased 8 x 8 pan spreading the mixture evenly.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Cut into squares after cooling.

Top with Peanut butter if you like.

Callaway Gardens Speckled Heart Grits

For the last two years I have taken a little trip by myself around Mother’s Day…just me, myself and I.   It’s a time of reflection, rejuvenation and I also use the time to review goals and set new ones for the year to come.   


Relaxation and great food and drink fit into the weekend, too………of course!


The first trip I took was a return trip to a place my mother and I visited often…and a place where we had taken a “girl’s trip” with my best friend and her mother when my friend and I were in high school.   


The four of us had a wonderful time…making Callaway Gardens one of my “special” places to visit.


One morning while we were there we left our hotel and drove up Pine Mountain to Callaway Garden’s Store and had breakfast.  Not only did we have a wonderful view from breakfast….we had some of the best grits I ever had.

The grits happened to be speckled heart grits and they aren’t your normal run-of-the-mill grit at all. 


Speckled heart grits are made from the whole grain including the heart of the corn kernel.   This results in robust grits that roll around your mouth with a slight grainy texture.


I love them.


I love them so much I bought two bags during my weekend sojourn at the gardens.  The bag had an interesting recipe……I’ll admit I haven’t tried it yet, but I plan to soon.


Here's the recipe:


Baked Grits Souffle


1 ½ cups Speckled Heart Grits
4 ½ cups water
2 cans mushroom soup
6 eggs, well beaten
1 cup cracker crumbs
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese


Cook grits according to traditional recipe above.  Mix with Mushroom soup.   Add well beaten eggs.  Place mixture in baking dish greased well with bacon drippings.   Cover with cracker crumbs and cheese.  Bake at 400 degrees for 30 minutes    Serves 4-6


While it’s almost ten months until my next trip I’m already thinking about the location.   I usually try to stick somewhere in the Atlanta area.


Any suggestions?

Restaurant Review: Six Feet Under

We had dinner Wednesday night at Six Feet Under.  The Mister and I had dined there this past April, and we liked it so much we wanted a return trip.   The occasion was the Mister’s birthday and our grown children would be joining us. 

Six Feet Under has two Atlanta locations……437 Memorial Drive, S.E. and 685 11^th Street.    We have only been to the Memorial Drive/Grant Park location so far, but love the atmosphere.   It’s a great restaurant…..tavern……and hang out spot with lots of beer choices and interesting food.

  

First of all Six Feet Under is located in a great historic place with a  Grant Park address….close to neighborhoods like Cabbagetown and Glenwood Park, PLUS it overlooks historic Oakland Cemetery making my history loving toes curl. 

In fact, the reason why the Mister and I ended up at Six Feet Under in the first place had to do with the fact we were enjoying a Sunday afternoon wandering through the 48 acre cemetery visiting the graves of folks like golfer Bobby Jones, Gone with the Wind’s author…Margaret Mitchell, and various other Atlanta notables.

The complex that houses Six Feet Under is known collectively as The Jane and it’s more than just a restaurant.   The complex offers office and retail space and loft condos are in the mix as well.

Second, the restaurant is housed in a reclaimed Atlanta manufacturing company.  The building used to be the home of Southern Elevator Company as far back as the 1920s.   A blurb on the Six Feet Under menu states, “According to local old-timers the factory produced everything except those ‘really fancy cabs’.  A former controller at the factory enjoys ‘sitting in his old office’ now that [the restaurant has moved in.]”  

While the space was renovated for the restaurant there are still signs that the space was a manufacturing spot with exposed pipes and factory windows.  There is a bar downstairs 

…along with a main dining room.   Notice all of the old beer signs along the walls.

Take a walk up the beautiful staircase and you find yourself with one of the best views of Atlanta’s skyline where you can dine and drink on the rooftop.

During our afternoon visit in April the place was packed and we had to wait a few minutes for a table.  The Mister sampled the oysters….

….while I ordered the Fried Green Tomatoes.   I’ve tried everyone’s from Savannah to Asheville….so why would this be any different?   We joke that we are on an extended Fried Green Tomato tour across the South.   

I pronounce these to be yummy.   The tomatoes are dusted with a cornmeal rub and deep fried…then brought to you drizzled with a horseradish-dill sauce and a few chopped tomatoes scattered about.

I then opted for the Fried Chicken Tacos.   The waiter delivered three soft flour tortillas to the table stuffed with fried chicken, cotija cheese, shredded lettuce, roasted corn.  Each taco was drizzled with spicy salsa drizzle and a fried jalapeno.  A little salsa verde was served on the side.

The mister had the Black n’ Bleu Slider which consisted of a honey wheat bun, bleu cheese crumble, fried leeks and chopped spinach.  

Everything was great!

Wednesday night's dinner was great as well…..

Dear Daughter had to sample the Crab Cakes…..four sautéed crab cakes served over fresh spinach and topped with corn, micro greens and mustard sauce.

She also sampled the Chilled Cucumber Soup…..served with a crab cake and topped with micro greens and Sriacha – a Vietnamese hot sauce.   I admired how the soup was presented with dots of the Sriacha on the lip of the bowl.

Dear Son followed in his father’s footsteps and enjoyed the Black n’  Bleu Slider while the Mister and Dear Daughter enjoyed Crab Legs which were described as being a fisherman’s pound.   

I had the Fried Shrimp basket and the one word I could use to describe my meal would be……LIGHT.     Yes, it was fried, but I didn’t leave the restaurant feeling like I had just ingested a greasy meal.   The basket came with several shrimp, homemade chips, and two hushpuppies which were unique.   They seemed to be a mix of flour and cornmeal….with the end result being more like a cake than the normal hushpuppy.   While I didn’t rave over them…..it was a nice change, and I try to be open to new ways of preparing food.  The menu stated the hush puppies as well as the tartar sauce were prepared with chopped jalapeno, but they weren’t hot at all.

As I mentioned above one of the enticements of visiting Six Feet Under has to do with Oakland Cemetery……check out some of my pictures I took at the cemetery in May and one of my favorite Oakland stories over at Georgia on My Mind.

Setting a Lovely Table

If you had to query some of my friends for my weaknesses I venture to say that a majority of them would mention jewelry as a top weakness.  They would be right.  I do love my baubles, geegaws, and trinkets. 

My friends may say I have a weakness for dining out, and they would be correct.  I love to try a new restaurant, to try different versions of the same dish, to experience the different décor in various restaurants.

However, one of my major weaknesses I try to keep under control….mainly because it can be so expensive….is I adore decorating a table.  Plates, cups, saucers, various pieces of silver, crystal, mixing and matching things, using unusual items to decorate a table….I adore all of it.   I have several different sets of dishes and glassware.   When I’m out shopping I will pick up a set a of dishes or items that might make a great table-scape like folks pick up a new shirt or pair of pants.

 If I ever win the lottery I will have a room….not a closet….but a ROOM devoted to table linens, glassware, china, silver, napkin rings, and objects to use on dining tables.  

However, until I win the lottery I’ll just have to keep my weakness under control. 

I  went to the Penny McHenry Hydrangea Festival today and one of the sections of the flower show including table decorations…..I snapped up several pictures to refer to later for ideas. 

You can click on each picture to enlarge it a bit and see it isolated on a page by itself.  Then hit the "back" button to return to the post.

Here they the tables I loved:

I need a set of red glasses like these.....

Notice the greenery tucked into the napkin.....

Look at the plate on this table.  I love the deep red....

I don't particularly like the table cloth for this design, but it does stick to the horsey theme.  

This picnic scape is one of my favorites.   The trunk, the basket and the hat all add to the theme for a country picnic while you are out gathering a bouquet of hydrangeas.

Some of the entries were for buffet tables....my preferred way to serve a large crowd.   I love the mix of flowers here......

This is another buffet setting that caught my eye.   

It's hard to tell in the picture but placed along the table were peacock placements or a runner of some sort.   I'm really coveting these napkin rings.  Love them!!!

This was an interesting table, too!   Greens and tans......    Loving the simple basket to prop the plates up with the napkins draped over....

                                     

There were flowers and lanterns all down this buffet table.....

The center bouquet was interesting.   Yes!!!!  They used green apples in the bottom of the glass container to keep the flowers stationary.  

This is the same arrangement from the top....

Another section of table designs has to do with breakfast trays.  I loved this particular one because it's so simple yet elegant with unique plate choice.    Love!!!!    

What's more elegant than white and silver?   The theme for this year's festival was The Royals tying in types of hydrangeas with the Queen of England's Jubilee.   This table designer picked up on the theme as well.  The napkins rings were rhinestone tiaras.

This is from the table above....I loved the detail of wrapping the wine bottle in white.

And the last table I snapped pictures of.....lovely china.   Too lovely not to get a picture.  I was very tempted to turn over a piece to see what it was....but I didn't.  :)

The same table as above but showing the full detail.....notice the small box on the table next to the flowers.  It had the wedding portrait of the Queen of England and Prince Phillip painted on it.

Former UGA football coach Vince Dooley was the featured speaker for this year’s hydrangea festival.   He shared his love of gardening with us as well as some pictures of his gardens. 

You can see some pictures of him and his gardens I've posted over at Georgia on My Mind